Lenore Filler Morrissey was born and raised in the Los Angeles area.  As an active young person, she began an interest in sports at age 5, playing soccer until her early 30’s semi-professionally as a goalkeeper.  Lenore also played high school tennis, track and college softball.  She earned her undergraduate Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology at Whittier College in 1993.  She continued her studies in sciences at San Francisco State, Long Beach State and Louisiana State Universities.  During this time, she published two peer reviewed studies and performed preliminary development of a transdermal blood sugar monitoring watch for a biomedical research company in the Bay Area.  Lenore was accepted into the Feinberg School of Medicine Program in Physical Therapy at Northwestern University and graduated with her Masters of Physical Therapy Degree in 1998.   While at Northwestern, she was published in a peer reviewed pediatric physical therapy journal.

 

Upon returning to California, Lenore worked in a variety of physical therapy settings including pediatrics, home health and inpatient rehabilitation.  At Kaiser Permanente she treated mostly orthopedic patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings.  In addition, she participated in a  year-long manual physical therapy course after which she achieved her Orthopedic Certified Specialty from the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialists 2004.  Then in 2005, Lenore opened and operated a private outpatient orthopedic physical therapy practice in Rancho Palos Verdes for 11 years.  During this time, she attended many continuing education courses including functional movement athletic testing, kinesio taping techniques, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, sarco-iliac joint dysfunction coursework, foot and ankle injury and orthotic prescription and fabrication to name a few.  While running her practice, she saw a growing need for expertise in head and neck disorders including temporomandibular dysfunction and their relationship to airway dysfunction.  In 2012, she studied oral myofunctional therapy under Joy Moeller, BS, RDH, a leading international instructor in this field.  Later, she earned her Certification as a Craniofacial Specialist under the training of renowned expert in craniofacial and temporomandibular disorders, Mariano Rocabado at the University of St. Augustine.  She then went on to receive her transitional doctorate in physical therapy with this university specializing in craniofacial study in 2017. 

 

 

Lenore is a faculty member for the Airway Focused Dentistry Mini-Residency, a member of American Physical Therapy Association, the Idaho and California Physical Therapy Associations, the Academy of Applied Myofunctional Sciences, the Foundation for Airway Health and the American Academy of Applied Physiologic Medicine and Dentistry of which she is a liaison and physical therapy founding board member.  She continues study with many organizations including the Postural Restoration Institute®, Applied Integration Academy, the Laynee Restorative Breathing Method™, Upledger Institute, Academy of Applied Myofunctional Sciences, Stecco Fascial Manipulation® , and Oxygen Advantage/Buteyko breathing.  She believes that applying the knowledge learned through these courses and establishing baseline measurements using tools such as capnometry, gait and postural assessment, cranial nerve function, and oral myofunctional testing are critical in revealing compensatory bodily strategies specific to airway dysfunction.  This enables her to effectively communicate and collaborate with other airway professionals dedicated to providing patient care with a foundation in identification of root causes.

 

Lenore is currently writing chapters for multiple publications specific to the contribution and collaboration of physical therapy evaluation and treatment coming soon.  Lenore treats private patients both in Boise, quarterly in Southern California and remotely online.  Her mantra; “Total body well-being begins with a patent airway in concert with proper alignment and musculoskeletal function of the structures of the head, neck, tongue, diaphragm and down to the feet.”  For over 25 years since graduating from physical therapy school and as a sufferer of chronic TMD, neck pain and sleep disordered breathing herself, Lenore has discovered mostly untapped and indispensable treatment skills that can be appropriately implemented by a licensed physical therapist.  Additionally, like other like-minded “airway centric” practitioners, she has determined that such an approach is not only a holistic and non-invasive option to wellness for patients of all ages, but has had a substantial foundation in research for decades.  It is only a matter of time before it will be common knowledge that many drug therapies and other forms of unpopular “band-aid” treatments for compensatory musculoskeletal strategies rooted in airway dysfunction become a thing of the past.  “The human body has an incredible capacity to heal itself, we just have to remove the obstacles.”

 

 

Lenore recently moved to Boise with her husband, daughter and standard rescue poodle, Stuart who is ever present and ready to join the fun!  She is active in downhill skiing, running, and excited to discover the hiking and biking trails that the beautiful Treasure Valley has to offer.